Democrat President nominee contender Joe Biden called a women a “Dog Face Pony Soldier” after she questioned his elect-ability in a National Election. Does the phrase have some meaning besides Biden thinking that she belongs to an army of ponies that have dog faces?
Lying dog faced pony soldier was the actual barb.
You’ve probably heard it on your victrola.
I don’t think it has a specific, second meaning.
Biden thought the woman was lying to him (I’d guess she was too) and he was trying to call her out, without using the words “you’re a liar.”
I got the “lying” part of the barb. Its the “dog faced pony soldier” part that escaped me.
And exactly what does a “victrola” have to do with answering my GQ?
Joe Biden claims the quote comes from a John Wayne movie. None of the sources that I have seen have actually been able to determine what movie it comes from, so that part might be a mistake on Biden’s part. As Darren Garrison’s link says, this is not the first time he has used that phrase, so whether or not it’s actually a John Wayne quote, Biden thinks it is.
The best guess for what this supposedly means that I have seen on the internet so far is that “pony soldier” refers to US Cavalry, which seems to make sense in the context of a John Wayne style western. Some think that the “dog faced” bit refers to an “Indian”. In other words, a “lying dog-faced pony soldier” is an Indian working for the US Cavalry, which calls into question their loyalty (are they loyal to the Indians or to the Pony Soldiers?).
So Biden may have intended the phrase to mean something along the lines of “are you really in our camp?”
This is based on a lot of internet speculation though.
Really? Do you know what a Victrola is?
Sorry. I meant to just give the full quote. I forgot I was in GQ when the victrola mention was made. Again, I’m sorry.
I know exactly what a Victrola is. Did I imply that I didn’t know what a Victrola is? What makes you think I don’t know what a Victrola is? What I don’t know is how that statement helped answer my GQ.
Even if it was in a movie, did it ever enter common usage? I can’t remember ever hearing that phrase, but maybe it had a brief flash before my time. For example, back when the 80’s movie “Say Anything” came out, I can remember people flippantly saying things like “You should get into kickboxing. It’s the sport of the future.” The people who have seen that movie will understand the reference, but otherwise it won’t mean anything special. There was just a small window of time where that saying was in common usage and it quickly died out. I could see how Biden’s saying was something he may have said to his friends who saw the movie, but maybe society in general didn’t really use it as a catchphrase.
A victrola is an antique record player. Joe is on record with advising that black parents aren’t teaching their kids to speak well enough so they should use record players to make sure the kids hear enough words. It’s a concatenation of a Bidenism with his age and apparent mental deterioration.
Although nobody but Biden has apparently EVER used the phrase “lying dog faced pony soldier” in any context since the beginning of the internet and its cataloguing of pop culture references I think the context is clear. Biden uses it when he gets asked a question he doesn’t like or interprets as being a challenge to his sense of the rightness of things. The phrase is bizarre enough that it gets passed off as a “joke,” in the same way that a guy snarls “Fuck you, you shitfaced asshole” at someone then lamely follows that up with “Gah, I was JUST JOKING–you’re SO SENSITIVE.” The guy is hostile AF to basically everyone but it keeps getting fluffed over–he puts his hands on people, traps women’s hands in his and won’t let go, jabs people in the chest and sticks his face right into theirs while spitting out his words. These are all unequivocally aggressive actions but he keeps getting away with them over and over again.
I didn’t write it, but it seemed to clear to me that a 77 year old candidate quoted a 71 year old film so a fellow poster referenced a 120 obsolete product.
I thought it was pretty humorous. But clearly it was not universally humorous.
DP
Moderator Note
This is a reminder that we are in General Questions. The OP is about the meaning of a specific phrase, not about criticism of Biden. Stick to the subject. This goes for everyone.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
Speculating - ‘dog-faced’ - wide-eyed, puppy-dog feigned innocence?
I’ve heard ‘dog-face’ used in reference to US troops in WWII. I assumed it meant something about the archetypal photos of exhausted, unshaven troops.
The origin of “dogface” for foot soldiers in WWII is unknown, but they lived in pup tents and foxholes, wore dogtags, and were lived like dogs.
mentioning the Victrola indicates that he thinks the reference is quite old. Which to the extent that there is a reference-it is. By implication it warns us that in his opinion any specific explanation will be obsolescent.
Possible explanation:
And the native chief in said movie was Pony That Walks.
Biden just mixed up a couple of movies in his memory to find a suitable, quotable insult. Just like we all do at some time or another.
So it’s a conflation of Tyrone Power’s Pony Soldier and John Wayne’s She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.
Now, can anyone explain why this question bothered me more than many far more important questions?